Action toy



United States Patent ACTION TOY Walter P. Doe and Leslie W. Sly, EastAurora, N. Y., assignors to Fisher-Price Toys, Inc., East Aurora, N. Y.

Application June 25, 1956, Serial No. 593,663

1 Claim. (Cl. 4699) This invention relates generally to the amusementdevice art and more specifically to a new and useful action toyparticularly adapted for use by young children.

It is an object of this invention to provide an action toy adapted to berolled along a supporting surface and providing a unique and highlyentertaining combination of a movable figured part and sound producingmeans actuated thereby.

Another object of this invention is to provide the foregoing in adurable toy which is safe for use by very young children and which addsgreatly to their entertainment and amusement.

Still another object of this invention is to provide the foregoing in atoy constructed of only a few pieces which are relatively inexpensivelyfabricated and readily assembled by modern mass production techniquesthereby comprising a low-priced toy.

In one aspect thereof, a toy constructed in accord with this inventionis characterized by the provision of sound producing means including asounding mechanism, a reciprocating member arranged to actuate thesounding mechanism during its stroke in one direction and traversing adifferent path of movement so as to avoid actuating the soundingmechanism during its return stroke, with means for reciprocating themember upon movement of the toy across a supporting surface.

In another aspect thereof, a toy inaccord with this invention ischaracterized by the provision of a sound producing mechanism includinga sound tube comprising a major body portion of the toy and a soundingmember, together with a reciprocating figured member arranged to actuatethe sounding member as the toy is moved along a supporting surface.

in the presently preferred embodiment, a toy in accord with thisinvention comprises a body member simulating a steam locomotive, whereinthe sound tube of the sound producing mechanism forms the locomotiveboiler, and wherein the reciprocating member simulates an engineer orthe like and is arranged for generally vertical reciprocation within thelocomotive cab with the head part thereof protruding through the roof ofthe cab.

The foregoing and other objects, advantages and characterizing featuresof this invention will clearly appear from the ensuing detaileddescription of the presently preferred embodiment thereof, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawing forming a part of thisspecification wherein:

Fig. l is a side elevational view of the toy;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary, longitudinal sectional view thereof; and

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view thereof.

Referring now to the accompanying drawing, there is shown a toy inaccord with the invention designed to simulate a steam locomotive havinga cab part generally designated 1 and a boiler part generally designated2. Cab part 1 comprises a pair of side wall members 3, a front wallmember 4 and a rear wall member 5, all secured to a base member 6 bymeans such as nails or the like, not illustrated, and a top wall member7 forming the roof of the cab and having an opening 8 therethrough.

The boiler part 2 is mounted on a platform 10. carried by the basemember 6. The boiler part 2, platform 10, base member 6 and a smokestack simulating member 12 are interconnected as by a nail 11 extendinggenerally vertically therethrough.

It is a feature of this invention that there is provided a soundproducing mechanism which includes a sound tube comprising a major bodyportion. of the toy. Ac.- cordingly, in the illustrated embodiment theboiler part 2 comprises a tube closed at its forward end as by a plate13, and at its rearward end. fitting within an annular recess 14 in thecab front wall member 4. Wall member 4 has an opening 15 therethroughgenerally concentric with. tube 2 and recess 14, and the boiler tube 2assists in holding a voice card 16 in place over opening 15 and againstthe inner annular shoulder 14 formed. by recess 14, as clearlyillustrated in Fig. 2.

A sounding member is provided in the form of a resilient spring 17fitted within a vertical groove 18 in the front face of wall member 4.Spring 17 has a part- 19 arranged to strike the drum-like voice card 16,and one end of spring 17 is hooked. under wall member 4 as shown at 20and held thereagainst as by the staple 21, with the other end of spring17 projecting rearwardly into the cab part 1 and terminating in a rolledpart. 22.

The. toy is arranged to be rolled across a supporting surface 23, andto. this end there is provided a pair of front wheels 24 carried by anaxle 25 journalled in base member 6 and a pair of rear wheels 26 carriedby an axle 27 journalled in grooves 28 in base member 6 adjacent thebottom edges of side wall members 3.v In addition, means are. providedto actuate the sounding spring 17 as the toy is rolled across asupporting surface, and it is a feature of the invention that such meanscomprise areciprocating figured member, as follows.

A figured member is arranged. in cab part 1 for generally verticalreciprocation relative thereto, and comprises a body member 29, a headmember 30, a visor 31 and a hat member 32. Body member 29 is carried onone end of a wire or nail 33, and the head member 30, visor 31 and hatmember 32 are assembled in that order and on the top of body member 29as by a nail or pin 34.

The rear axle 27 is formed with a double crank portion 35, and the lowerend of wire 33 is provided with an opening 36 through which the axlecrank portion 35 extends for swinging the nail 33 as the axle rotates.Therefore, as the toy is rolled along the supporting surface 23, therotating crank portion 35 causes the figured member, which in thisinstance simulates the engineer or fireman of the locomotive, toreciprocate in a generally vertical direction. The figured memberprojects through the opening 8 in the roof 7 of cab 1, whereby as thetoy is rolled along a supporting surface, the engineer alternately popsup from a relatively low or hidden position within the cab, asillustrated in Fig. 2, to an exposed position as illustrated in Figs. 1and 3, and then is retracted, such reciprocation of the figuresimulating member between these positions providing considerableamusement for children of the age group to which this toy is directed.

In accord with the invention, reciprocation of the figured memberactuates the sounding spring 17 on its stroke in one direction, which isaccomplished as follows.

When the toy moves in a forward direction, as indicated by the arrows 37in Fig. l, the spring part 22 projects into the path of downwardmovement of the reciprocating figured member. When the spring is in theposition of rest illustrated in broken lines in Fig. 2, as the figuredmember moves downwardly from its exposed 7 position illustrated in Figs.1 and 3 the shoulder 38 provided by the flat bottom surface of the bodymember 29 bears against the spring part 22 and forces the samedownwardly to retract the sounding spring, until the figured memberreaches approximately its lowermost position illustrated in Fig. 2. Uponcontinued rotation of the wheels 26 in the direction of arrows'37 crankportion 35 swings'the wire33'and the figured member rearwardly and thebody member 29 slides off the rolled spring part 22, releasing thespring to snap against the voice card 16 and thereby produce a noise.The crank'portion 35 then'swings the figured member upwardly through apath of movement rearwardly displaced from its downward path of movementso as to avoid the sounding spring part22; V

Thus, as the toy is rolled along a supporting surface the engineerbobs'up and down and each time he moves downwardly he retracts thesounding spring 17 and then releases the same to produce a sound fromthe voice card 16. The sound produced by the voice card is amplifiedbodiment of the invention have been disclosed herein, it a will beappreciated that the invention is susceptible of various modificationsthereof and variations therein with out departing from 'the spirit'ofthe invention and the scope of the appended claim. a V

Having fully disclosed and completely described this invention, togetherwith its mode of operation, what is' claimed as new is:

A wheeled action toy comprising, a body including a cab simulatinghousing part and a boiler simulating part arranged to simulate a steamlocomotive, a sound producing' mechanism including a sound tube formingsaid and made somewhat hollow in a particularly effective 7 manner bythe sound tube comprising the boiler 2.

It will be noted that the body and head members 29 and 30 of the figuredmember are of curved form so as to slide freely in and through theopening 8 and facilitate oscillation of the figured member in alongitudinal direction as the same is reciprocated vertically. The visor31, which preferably is of a plastic material, is positioned to bearagainst the top wall member 7 of the cab part-1 as the sounding spring17 is released, and provides a flexible bearing plate on which thefigured member pivots before beginning its upward movement. Also, therear face of wall member 4 is vertically grooved, as indicated at 39, tobetter accommodate the reciprocating figured member. 9 Accordingly, itis seen that thetoy of this invention fully accomplishes the foregoingobjects. It is readily fabricated of Wood parts with the exception ofboiler 2 which conveniently is made of rolled cardboard tubing and endplate 13 and the various pins, axles and springs which are of metal. Thewalls of the cab can have colorful lithographs thereon as indicated at40 in Fig. 1, and the figure simulating member will have appropriatepaint or other markings thereon as indicated at 41.

boiler part, a drum-like end wall for said sound tube ad jacent said cabpart, and a resilient sounding spring positioned to strike said endWall, said cab part having a top wall formed with an opening therein, afigure simulating member within said cab 'part projecting through saidopening and arranged for generally vertical reciprocation relative tosaid cab part, and means including crank means engaging said figuresimulating member and reciprocating the same as said toy is rolled alonga supporting surface, said sounding spring projecting into the path ofsaid figure simulating member on its stroke in one direction for beingretracted and then released thereby, and said crank means swinging saidfigure simulating member clear of said sounding spring during itsreturnstroke.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS361,606 Bailey Apr. 19, 1887 1,301,669 Englund Apr. 22, 1919 2,055,848Marx Sept. 29, 1936 2,069,181 Fisher Jan. 26, 1937 2,089,885 Fisher Aug.10, 1937 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,100,820 France Nov. 16, 1953

